Pete Buttigieg Is Becoming Everyone's Favorite Underdog [View all]

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https://www.out.com/politics/2019/3/19/pete-buttigieg-polling-democrats-underdog?fbclid=IwAR10PKxh_ly-tqfD0T59nNT35p5kb3HyBovfIjkhYar83YzZygEQicJS-lM

Pete Buttigieg Is Becoming Everyone’s Favorite Underdog
By Michelle Garcia
March 19 2019 9:53 AM EDT

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With more eyes on Buttigieg, he’s been seizing the moment; many of the points made to CNN and elsewhere are things he’s been saying for some time, particularly, “I have more years of government experience under my belt than the president. I also have more years of executive government experience than the vice president, and more military experience than anybody to walk into that office on day one since George H. W. Bush.”

But notably, anecdotes about who he is as a person are trickling out. There was that time, according to Time reporter Anand Giridharadas, that Buttigieg started speaking Norwegian to a journalist at the drop of a hat, explaining that he learned the language to read the books of an author whose work was only available in Norwegian. His remarks to the Muslim people in his community after the deadly shooting in New Zealand were more articulate than President Trump’s reaction to the extremist’s actions. And of course, there are Buttigieg memes.

Democrats shouldn’t discount the unprecedented excitement for an out, gay candidate being taken seriously. He may be polling at one percent now, but there was a time not too long ago that even having an openly gay man running for president would be laughable at best, and at worst, opening him up for ignorant treatment or threats of violence.

All of this is to say, Buttigieg is riding a wave. Will he ride it all the way to the White House? With a crowded field and low name recognition, his chances aren’t exactly high. Still, Democrats couldn’t pick a more stark opponent for the Vice Presidential debates in fall 2020: Buttigieg versus Pence? We’d like to see it.